I’ve been seeing ads for a gadget called a “power factor correction device,” which is supposed to save you in the double digits on your household electric bill by storing the “reactive power” that your appliances’ motors need to operate.

So I asked my friends at SRP, APS and TEP about these things, and they all said the same thing: A power factor correction device will not save you a penny on your home’s electric bill.

That’s because utilities don’t charge homeowners for the little bit of reactive power a house needs. It’s free. You can’t save money by using less of something that’s free.

I know everyone is trying to cut their energy bills wherever they can; so am I. I even bought an energy management computer for my house after I learned that electric utilities charge different rates at different times of day, depending on how much demand there is for electricity. My energy management computer “knows” when the rates are lowest, and it automatically raises or lowers my air conditioning to take advantage of low rates and to avoid high ones.

I saved $1,200 in one year on my electric bills using that device, and I keep my house a cool 72 degrees all summer long.

That makes sense to me. I can see the savings. I can understand how it works. My utility doesn’t have any problem with it. I even recommend it to Rosie on the House listeners.

A tip: Before you invest any money in a product that claims it will cut your electric bill, find out what your electric utility has to say about it. If SRP or APS says the contraption won’t save you any money, don’t buy it.

Instead, do what you can around your house to cut your family’s energy use and electric bill. Here are five “no-brainers”:

1. Keep the heat out. Half of all of the heat that enters your home comes in through the windows. So cover them up! Put up awnings or a patio cover, plant trees in front of windows, add a shade screen or cover your window with clear film. Do something to prevent the hot desert sun from burning into your home and jacking up the air conditioning bills. Then do something extra. Blocking the sun on the outside of the house is seven times more effective than simply hanging curtains indoors. Draperies stop the light from shining through, but the heat still gets in. You can save up to 15 percent on your cooling bills if you shade your west-facing windows—the ones that get the afternoon sun.
2. Change the filters. Dirty air conditioning filters prevent air to flow through them to the air conditioning system, and that makes your system work harder. The harder the a/c has to work, the more it will cost you. Don’t let your filter get too dirty. Change it every single month on the same day you pay your electric bill. You can save up to 2 percent on your bill if you do. Next time you change the filter, upgrade it. The best ones are good-quality, pleated air conditioner filters that cost around $5.
3. Crank up the thermostat. For every degree you turn your thermostat up during air conditioning season, you’ll save about 2 percent on your cooling costs. Try setting your thermostat at 78 degrees and turning on your ceiling fan. If that’s too warm for you, inch it up as far as you can and still feel comfortable.
4. Install ceiling fans. They won’t cool the air, but they’ll make the air feel cooler by moving it around, which creates a sort of “wind chill” effect. That makes you feel more comfortable. When the fan is running, you can move your thermostat three to four degrees higher without noticing a difference in your comfort level.
5. Turn it on. This is the first thing you should do: Replace every light bulb in your house with a compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb. Sure, they cost more to buy than the incandescent light bulbs you use now. But they use 75 percent less energy, so they pay for themselves and then some over their lifetime in the form of lower energy bills. In fact, you can save $30 by replacing just one incandescent with a CFL. A bonus: You only have to change the bulb about once every five years. And because CFLs emit very little heat, they won’t make your room warmer or force your air conditioner to work harder.